Together Forever
by courtneygiggles
Summary: What if Zuko's father had made him go on the fire nation raid in the South Pole when Katara's mother was killed? What if they became friends? How would the story change? How would their lives cross? (I didn't really know which rating to put on there...the worst thing in here will probably be a kiss, but I would rather be safe than sorry) PLEASE REVIEW!:)
1. Chapter 1

What if Zuko's father had made him go on the fire nation raid in the south pole when Katara's mother was killed? What if they became friends? How would the story change? How would their lives cross?

There was black all around her. The snow falling from the heavens was a dark shade the color of the night sky instead of the normal white. Katara couldn't explain how thrilled she was to see a color other than white dot the ground. She dropped the firewood she had been carrying and ran back into the hut to tell her father about the black snow. Unfortunately, he didn't seem to be as excited for the change as she was. He ran outside and seemed to panic, running around the village and waking the men. She was thoroughly confused. What was the problem with black snow? Katara began to freak out when she saw how frightened the burly warrior men were. Maybe the world was falling apart. She ran inside and asked Sokka what was going on.

"The fire nation troops are coming! Don't you know anything? Those are the black ashes from their boats!" he said as he pulled his boots and helmet and little wooden boomerang out of the brown box in the corner of their hut. "Now stay here. I'm going to go help daddy save the village from the fire nation." She could tell he was scared by the way he kept dropping his boomerang and fumbling with the leather straps on his boots. The helmet their dad had given him was much too big and kept falling down on his head, making it impossible to see. It was obviously not made for an eight year old boy. He raced out of the hut to find their father. Katara, feeling quite helpless, decided to go find her mother. As she walked out of their home she saw a giant ship, bigger than a hundred of their canoes put together. Fire nation troops began pouring out of the boat. Some were riding giant lizard creatures that looked quite vicious to Katara. The women of the tribe began grabbing the children and running for the huts. Katara spun around in the mass confusion as she tried to catch a glimpse of her mother or older brother. Somewhere along the way she was lifted off her feet and carried into a nearby hut by one of the other women. While the women tried to calm the children who were crying in the hut, Katara saw her chance for escape. She had to find her mother and make sure she was okay. She slid out of the hut unnoticed and ran through the village, dodging fire nation troops and warriors. As she was running, she spotted one of her father's friends hit a fire nation troop with a boomerang. She believed his name was Bato. When he caught sight of the little seven year old girl running through the village, he shouted at her, telling her to get inside a hut. That is exactly what I plan to do, she thought. After I find my mother. She peeked inside every hut, looking for her mother who would hopefully be sitting inside one just waiting for her. As she rounded a corner and poked her head inside a small gray hut, she heard her mother's voice saying something to a very large Fire Nation man about water bending. She became excited since she had succeeded in finding her mother. Wait a minute, had she just told him that she was a water bender? Katara was the only water bender in the entire village, why had her mother said that to the man? Katara was about to step forward and tell the man that she too was a water bender, she did not want to be left out, when she was yanked by the hood of her coat out into the snow.

"Hey!" Katara yelled. She picked herself up out of the slush and brushed her pants off. She was quite irritated that someone had made her new pants wet with snow and ash. She turned toward the person who had pulled her from the hut, hands on her hips, and froze, eyes wide. It was a young fire nation boy, not much older than her. His straight black hair was pulled into a tiny ponytail on the top of his head and he wore a fluffy red parka.

"Why did you pull me out of the hut?" she asked the boy curiously. He looked down at the ground, suddenly very interested in his shoes.

"Um, well...you shouldn't talk back to a fire nation soldier. He could become very angry." why was he acting like some scared kid who was caught doing something bad? Katara smiled at him, hoping to make him feel better. He tilted his head at her, confused. Why was she smiling at him, he thought. Maybe he was supposed to smile back at her. He really didn't smile often, especially around his father. He tilted the corners of his mouth upward, forcing himself to smile. He was concentrating so hard on smiling, that he didn't realize his eyebrows had knitted together to form a frown. Katara giggled at the ridiculous expression on his face and immediately felt comfortable with him.

"I'm Katara" she said confidently. He nodded at this and continued to stare at her. She realized she would have to make him talk. "So...what is your name?" she asked encouragingly.

"Oh!" he said, "right, I'm Prince Zuko". Suddenly, a boomerang whizzed by his head and hit a fire nation man square in the chest. They finally realized that they were both standing right out in the middle of the battle. She grabbed his bare hand with her small gloved one and dragged him through the village to a large stone building. They ran behind it, trying to control their now ragged breathing. He leaned up against the stone wall and a giant snow drift that had gathered on the ledge just above his head plopped right onto him, almost covering his entire body. Katara laughed and helped dig him out. He looked very disgusted as he stood up and began to glare venomously at the snow. She noticed that his uncovered hands were starting to turn blue and his teeth had begun to chatter.

"Why didn't you wear gloves?" she asked.

He tucked his hands under his armpits, trying to keep them from freezing.

"I-it's w-w-warm in the f-fire nation. I d-don't h-have any" he chattered, barely audible. Katara slid off her fuzzy blue gloves and put them onto his hands. She noticed that his parka and thin red pants were still soaking wet from the snow. With a flick of her wrist, the water was pulled out of his clothes and into her hand. His eyes immediately widened and his jaw dropped. "You are the water bender?" he asked incredulously. She dropped the water into the snow and looked up at him confused. Why had he referred to her as the water bender instead of a water bender.

"What's wrong?" She was always used to people congratulating her and praising her for being a water bender. Why did he seem so frightened all of a sudden?

"Well, the reason the fire nation has come to this village was to kill the last water bender from the south pole". Katara suddenly paled, very afraid. Wait, her mother had told that man that she was a water bender, not Katara. Oh no! Realization suddenly washed over her and she turned on her heel and began to run towards the hut she had seen her mother in earlier. She was faintly aware of Zuko's voice calling her name over the sound of the wind and the battle. She had to get there before her mother was hurt. Maybe if Katara got there in time, she could show the men how great water bending can be. Then Katara wouldn't be killed and her mother would be safe. There it was. Just a few more strides...whoosh! She was knocked off of her feet by something hard. She landed in a snow drift after flying a few feet through the air. Darkness began to creep into the edges of her vision. She struggled to stay awake, but was unable to keep her head up. Soon her eyes began to close, plunging Katara into a sea of black...


	2. Chapter 2

Zuko began to run after Katara, calling her name. He didn't realize she would run away from him. She could get herself killed! He knew the fire nation warriors wouldn't listen to reason, but she didn't. They had come for one thing and one thing alone: to kill the last water bender from the South Pole. One of the traits that the fire nation people held close to them was their honor. It would be shameful to return to the fire nation and announce that they had failed. Fire Lord Ozai would definitely strip them of all honors or rewards if he didn't kill them or challenge them to an Agni Kai instead. Zuko looked up and saw a giant tail from one of the lizards knock Katara through the air and into a nearby snow drift. "Katara!" he shouted. She didn't move. He panicked as he ran even faster in her direction. She had become his best friend in the short amount of time that he had known her, and now she was lying unconscious in a snow drift all thanks to him. He hoped he hadn't totally ruined his only chance at being her friend. Suddenly he was off his feet and moving in the opposite direction. "What the...". He looked up into the face of a fire nation soldier.

"It is nearly time to depart Prince Zuko", The man said to him. Zuko didn't recognize the man through his helmet, but the voice sounded familiar. He turned his head back to where Katara was in the snowdrift...wait a minute, he thought. She's gone! He frantically turned his head from side to side trying to catch a glimpse of her little brown head bobbing among the people, but she was nowhere to be found. The man towed Zuko onto the ship with him and set him down just inside the door. Zuko immediately took off running towards the upper deck, hoping that if he could get there in time then he could catch a glimpse of Katara and know she was okay. Zuko's feet echoed on the metal stairs as he sprinted up and up and up. He burst out into the freezing air gasping for breath. Zuko hated stairs. They were quite unessecary in his opinion. He walked over to the side of the boat and looked over the side, hoping to find his friend. What he saw instead made him shiver. Injured water tribe warriors littered the ground outside the huts. Women and children were crying as they sat over their dying husbands and fathers. He was suddenly afraid to look. He didn't want to see Katara's body among the others on the ground. What if a soldier had found her? What if they knew she was a water bender? The fire nation has caused this pain, he realized. It was all his fault that his only friend could be down there on the ground, dead or dying. Then he saw her. He was so happy that a grin broke out across his face, until he saw the expression on hers. Her big eyes were staring at the sky, full of tears. His face immediately fell as those tears started to spill over and trickle down her face. Then she spotted him standing on top of the boat. She gave him a halfhearted smile and waved a small brown hand. Wait, hadn't she been wearing gloves a little while ago? Oh! They were still on his hands! He hadn't had a chance to give them back. He pulled them off and held them up to her. How could he get them back to her, he thought. Maybe he could throw them over the side and she could water bend them to shore or something. No, she could be seen by a fire nation soldier. Then she shook her head and began to reach inside her pockets. Did she want him to keep her gloves? Why would she do that? He lives in a tropical climate. She was the one who would need them. Then he saw her pull another pair of the same gloves out of her pocket and slide them on. Oh, he thought. Of course she has other pairs. It was becoming harder and harder to see her as the ship pulled away from the ice. He would miss her. Even though he only knew her for a short time, she was his best friend. If Azula found out that his only friend lived hundreds of miles away on a remote block of ice, she would surely laugh at him or call him names. Zuko clutched the small blue gloves to his chest. He would never forget her...


	3. Chapter 3

It had been two weeks since the invasion. And her mothers death. The whole village had started to move on, except her. The loss of Katara's mother was devastating. She didn't know how she could possibly live without her love and guidance. Katara sat down for dinner with her father and brother in the little hut. The sea prunes tasted bitter and the seal meat was burned. Though her father was obviously trying, mother had definitely been the better cook. Katara decided that she would have to learn how to cook to save her and Sokka from further suffering in the future. None of them spoke as they ate. Tonight was very painful because exactly two weeks ago today was the day she lost her mother. What Katara hated most was when people pretended to be alright even though they weren't. The entire village obviously didnt agree with her beliefs and must have decided that fake smiles and akward conversations were better than silence. That is why Katara didn't try to be happy for everyone else. Once they had all finished eating, Katara helped put everything away and tidy up the house. She then trudged over to her warm bed and climbed as deep under the furs as was possible without sticking out the other end. Katara reached her hand under her pillow and pulled out a picture she had painted just a few days ago. Katara genuinely enjoyed painting and drawing. She felt as though this particular piece was extremely accurate, possibly her best yet, because it was as if she had captured his face inside the paper. Katara's father came and sat on her bed, preparing to tuck her in when he saw the picture. "What is that?" he asked curiously. Katara handed the picture to him so he could get a better look at her masterpiece.

"It is a picture of my friend" she replied proudly.

Her father turned the painting every which way before asking, "Who is this? I don't think I've ever seen him before. And why is he wearing a red parka? Did you run out of blue paint?" She shook her head and giggled. "No silly, his parka is red. His name is Zuko. You probably haven't met him. He's not from around here. He came with all the fire nation men." Her father's face paled and he suddenly became very solemn. He dropped the painting and looked her straight in the eye. Katara became frightened. Maybe she wasn't supposed to tell her dad about Zuko. "Katara", he said quietly, "was his name Prince Zuko?" Katara looked down at her bed; she felt like she was in trouble. "Katara!" her father shouted, making her jump. She nodded. "Did you tell this boy you were a water bender?" Katara nodded again, her blue eyes filling with tears. Her father closed his eyes and breathed out through his nose. Then he stood up and exited her room, leaving her alone to wonder what she had done wrong.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

When Katara woke up, she realized that something was very wrong. Not only was no one in the house, but most of her belongings were gone. She threw the furs off of her and jumped out of bed. "Sokka? Dad? Mo-"...oh yeah. Sometimes she still forgot that her mother was gone. She walked outside to see everyone hugging her father and brother. This made Katara very upset because no one had thought to even wake her up for this seemingly sentimental moment, even thought she still had no idea what was going on. Maybe her father was still mad at her for last night. A few seconds later, she was spotted by her father and he walked up to her. "We are leaving the South Pole Katara." Her mouth dropped open and she just stared at him, eyes wide. She had never left the south pole in all her seven years of living. "Now that the fire nation knows that there is still a water bender here in the South Pole, they may come back to find you. That is why we must leave. We will go to live in an Earth Kingdom city. Now go and put your parka on, we have a long journey ahead of us."


	4. Chapter 4

It took forever to get to the Earth Kingdom city. Nearly two whole months! For awhile Katara thought that her dad had lied to her. She thought that he was taking her to some remote area of the planet to drop her off for being such a bad child, but they got there eventually. When they arrived, there was a little brown house with a red tile roof waiting for them. It seemed as if the house had been crafted straight from the rocky earth itself. The inside was completely bare; Katara couldn't wait to redecorate. Not two minutes after they got to their new home, their father left them again to go and buy new clothes. They would have to buy the traditional earth kingdom outfits to fit in. He had instructed the siblings to stay put inside the house and not open the door for anyone. This did not please Katara. She wanted to go outside and explore the new world which they had been thrust into; she decided to devise a plan to do exactly that. After their father left the house, Katara flopped onto her back in the middle of the stone floor and groaned loudly, hoping to attract her older brother's attention. She then looked out of the corner of her eye to see Sokka's reaction to his sister's theatrics. He sat calmly on the other side of the room, sharpening his boomerang and contentedly ignoring her. Katara picked herself up off the floor and moved a little bit closer to him, flopped onto the floor once more, and groaned even more dramatically. He still ignored her this time, but she thought she noticed a pause in his movements. Katara smiled and picked herself up off the floor, walked over to Sokka, and fell on top of him as she groaned as loudly as she possibly could. Sokka pushed her off of him and glared at her as if she was a very annoying bug that wouldn't leave him alone.

"What do you want?" he asked.

"What makes you think I want anything?" Now it was his turn to groan. "I don't want anything" she amended quickly "I need something". Sokka grunted and looked back down at his boomerang. "I need a warrior to help me with a very important task." Sokka continued to look at his boomerang, but she could tell she now held his attention by the way he sat up straighter and tilted his head. She grinned, happy to have caught him in her devious trap. "I want to go exploring. Dad won't be home for awhile and I don't want to be cooped up in here the whole day." Sokka glared at her as if she had asked him to cut off his right hand and give it to her.

"I'm not gonna be your partner in crime Katara. Dad told us to stay put and that's exactly what I intend to do. You wanna get yourself in trouble, go right ahead. Plus we can't leave the house all alone. A burglar could break in!" This reaction is not what she had expected. She would have to pull out the "Im-a-helpless-girl-and-need-a-big-strong-warrior-to-help-me" card again. Even thought she was only seven, she was quite advanced in the art of persuasion.

"Sokka," she whined "what exactly would you be protecting by staying here. There's nothing in the house! We don't even have furniture yet! I'm the one who needs protection. I don't know if I'm strong enough to fend off evil thugs or earth bender ruffians!" She made the most pathetic muscle she could with her arm for emphasis. "Just come with me! Just for a little bit!"

"No."  
"Yes."  
"No."  
"Yes."  
"No."  
"Yes."  
"No."  
"No."  
"Yes."  
"Haha!" Katara laughed triumphantly. "Gotcha! Now you have to come with me!" Sokka gruffly shook his head and turned back to the boomerang. Her eyes narrowed into tiny slits. How dare he ignore me...

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Ten minutes later they were walking down the tiny road, a very grumbly Sokka dragging his feet behind her and cradling his sore cheek where his sister had hit him with a boomerang. Katara skipped along the dirt road ahead of him enjoying the sights and humming quietly to herself. They had been walking for about ten minutes when she stopped. Sokka grunted and looked up as he ran straight into his little sister, who had suddenly become very wide eyed. Finally, he saw what she was looking at. A beautiful white beach stretched for miles just across the road. Katara squealed and ran off in its direction. I shouldn't have to put up with this, Sokka thought, as he trudged after his over excited sister.

"Hey! Wait, what are you doing?" Katara had stripped down to her under clothes and was wading into the blue ocean.

"C'mon Sokka! There's an island not too far out there! Let's check it out!" She dove under the water and began to swim away before Sokka could manage an objection. He groaned, thoroughly disgusted with his sister's antics.

"Why couldn't I have been an only child?" he mumbled, pulling off his shirt and shoes and diving in after his disappearing sister.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

They had been swimming for about five minutes before they came to the tropical island that Katara had seen from the beach. Katara ran onto the sand excitedly and took in their surroundings as Sokka flopped down onto the ground, gasping for breath. She wiggled her feet, loving the feel of the tiny grains between her toes.

"Okay...now...can we...go...back?" Sokka managed to choke out. Katara glared at him, appalled by his complete lack of enthusiasm.

"Of course not! We just got here!" She began to climb a rocky cliff close to where they were standing. Sokka groaned and rolled over onto his back.

"You go ahead Katara...I'll...catch up to ya...later." She waved at him distractedly over her shoulder and continued on her adventure up the side of the cliff. Katara figured if they were being forced to live here she might as well enjoy it. Finally, she had reached the top of the rock face and proceeded to pull herself over the edge and onto the flat land. She had come across the top of what seemed like a large plateau. She looked over the side she had just come from and saw Sokka, still laying on the beach. It looked like he had fallen asleep. She giggled at his gangly limp figure and turned around, making her way to the other side. What she saw there made her freeze in fear. People bustled around from shop to shop laughing and talking and buying new trinkets or foods. It wasn't what they were doing that scared her though, it was what they were wearing. The people were dressed in flowing robes and silks the color of a flame. This was most definitely not an Earth Kingdom island. This island belonged to the fire nation. Katara spun around, looking for somewhere to hide before she was spotted standing on top of the cliff. The only problem was that she was on a perfectly smooth plateau, with no vegetation or rocks to hide behind. There. There was a hole in the ground, big enough for her to climb into until she could devise a plan of escape. She ran over to it as quickly as she could and jumped down inside of it. Katara slid down... down... down... down... plop! Katara was deposited from the hole (which was actually more of a natural slide made out of rocks and mud) and into a large cavern that must have been inside the plateau. She was surprised to find a small blue pool in the middle of the cave and lovely green vines covering the walls. The pool sparkled and seemed to give off its own light source, as though there was a mini-sun trapped inside. It was the prettiest sight she had ever seen. Katara was still getting used to all the green and red and blue that seemed to be abundant here since she came from a place that was covered entirely in white. Katara dipped her bare toes into the pool and gasped. It was surprisingly warm. Suddenly something nudged against her toes, creating ripples across the surface of the pond. Were those...fish! How did they get here, she wondered. This beautiful world was such a mystery to her, and yet it was completely fascinating. The fish that swam lazily in the pool were multi colored with splashes of blues, yellows, greens, purples, and reds. They were beautiful. Katara knew that she would be spending a lot of time in this place. That was until she heard the voice behind her say, "Katara?" Oh crud, she thought. This can't be good.


	5. Chapter 5

PLEASE REVIEW! I want to know how to get better and if I should continue to post :) Thanks a bunch!

Zuko always loved going on vacation to his family's beach house. Even though his dad always stayed inside and worked, he loved to take walks with his mother or go exploring. Today was a particularly nice day and he was determined to spend his time outside. Hoping his mother would accompany him for a walk or game he went looking for her, but the servants informed him that she had left without him. This made Zuko thoroughly upset and he made it his mission to find someplace so great that his mother would have to come and see it with him tomorrow. Maybe if I can impress her, he thought, she'll want to come walking with me tomorrow. So he set off, looking for a place that they hadn't yet been to. Unfortunately, since they had come here every year since his birth nine years ago, there were very few places the pair hadn't been. They had visited the beach, the turtle duck ponds, the bazaar, and even the circus arena where magicians and clowns and gymnasts performed. Least year, Azula had found a friend there named Ty Lee. She possesed a unique ability to render one's body or limbs useless with one well placed jab to the shoulder or arm. This particularly frightened Zuko; he hated being out of control. Maybe that was why his sister cared for the girl so much: she could be very powerful in a very evil way if she wanted to be. That was where his sister had gone for the day and Zuko was sure to stay far away from the arena as he continued his search for a spectacular spot for him and his mother to visit tomorrow. Azula scared him very much and always found some way to tease or hurt him without getting caught by their parents. This bothered him greatly and made him quite jealous of her ability to lie. Zuko walked around the entire island two whole times before he came back to the beach to rest. Children ran along the water as their parents sat and watched, secretly hoping their energy would run out so that they could actually get sleep that night. Zuko loved the beach. He thought it was quite peaceful, when little children weren't running around and screaming their heads off of course. Zuko noticed a pink-ish tinge starting to spread across the top of his arms and hands. Oh no, he thought, I'm getting sunburned! And I haven't even found anywhere cool to go yet! Deciding that going home before he found a destination wasn't an option, Zuko walked into the shade of a large cliff wall instead. This would sheild him from the sun and maybe he could still catch a glimpse of something fun from there. He leaned against the vine covered rocks of the cliff wall and...whoosh! He fell right through the solid rock! A hole in the wall had been covered by leaves and vines and he had fallen right through it. The thick leaves cast a green glow around the cave behind him. Zuko stood up and turned around, taking in his surroundings. Now this mother would like, he thought. He noticed a small tunnel along the ground of the cave. He realized that he would be able to fit through it on his hands and knees so he got down and began to crawl through the opening very slowly. The light from the cave opening began to vanish as he made his way along the passage. Soon it became very dark and Zuko began to get slightly afraid. It wasn't that he was scared of the dark or anything like that; he was just slightly afraid of crawling along a tiny tunnel in a cave all alone with no knowledge of what was ahead and no light to see. Just as he was debating with himself about turning around and heading back, he saw a blue light ahead and the tunnel began to open up. It was so large now that he could stand on his feet without hitting his head on the jagged rocks above him. The tunnel opened up even wider until he was standing in the middle of a cave. The walls were covered in glowing blue gems. They gave off their own light and lit the entire place so brightly that he may as well have been standing out in the daylight. His mother wouldn't just like this, he decided. She would love it. In the back of the cavern, there was another tunnel that must lead to another cave somewhere. There must be hidden caves and tunnels all throughout the entire cliff! This excited him very much. He and his mother could take all week to explore the hidden catacombs inside the stone walls; maybe they would find hidden treasures, just like pirates. Instead of venturing further into the cavern to explore, he decided to wait for his mother and head back to the house. Maybe she would be there waiting for him and he could tell her of his amazing journey. This would be the best vacation ever.


	6. Chapter 6

Feel free to make suggestions about where the story should go! Just review or message me :)

Katara turned to find him climbing out of the hole she had slid down just moments before. "Oh! You scared me! I thought it was a scary fire nation soldier coming to haul me off or something." Sokka brushed loose bits of dirt from his trousers as he took in their surroundings.

"How would a fire nation soldier know your name anyway? And since you said that, I'm assuming you already know that we are currently on a fire nation island. Dad is gonna kill us! We should leave, NOW. No objections either Katara. Dad will probably be back any minute now and if he finds us gone, on a fire nation island no less, we are gonna be dead meat. Worse than dead meat actually. Dad'll probably be so mad that he'll kill us and feed our dead carcasses to the elephant koi, then kill the elephant koi so we'll be dead meat inside the deat meat. Then he'll feed that to the..."

"Are you almost finished?" Katara asked with a huff. "Sorry to interrupt, but I thought it might be a good idea to tell you that there is no way out of this place. Unless of course you plan to climb back up that nearly vertical slide we came down, I don't know how we'll even get out of here." Before she was done speaking, Sokka had begun to panic, running around the cave and banging on the walls. Then he started to scream for help and about how they were gonna die and many other unhelpful things.

Katara sighed, "Boys...completely useless" Katara glanced down at the fish swimming lazily in the pool and did a double take. Wait a minute...two fish in the pool had begun to swim together, forming what looked like a black and white swirl. No, not just a swirl...a yin and yang sign! They were spirits! They must be trying to tell me something, she thought as she waded into the shallow pool of glowing water. Sokka was still running around the cave and banging his hands against the rock walls. What did he think was gonna happen? That he would suddenly turn into an earth bender and be able to break out of a giant plataeu? What an idiot, she thought as she dove under the smooth water and began to look around. The pool was completely illuminated by those shiny, diamond-like rocks. She swam a bit deeper and noticed a tunnel near the bottom of the pool. An escape! Katara swam to the surface and climbed back out of the pool to retrieve her spastic brother. He had been reduced to tears by his hysteria and had curled up into a ball on the rocky floor. She grabbed his arm and told him her theory of an escape route as she began to drag him under the water with her.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The pair plopped down on the floor of their new home, finally able to catch their breath. Sokka was so tired, he hadn't even tried to lecture his sister yet on her evil and disobedient ways. She knew it was coming though. At that moment, she was just glad they had gotten home before their father, otherwise they would have a lot worse than a lecture to look forward to. Their father suddenly burst through the door, a look of fury on his face. Sokka and Katara scrambled off the floor, trying to make it look as though they had stayed in the bare little house like they had been told.  
"Oh stop acting, I know you left the house. While I was in the city I overheard an earth kingdom vendor saying that two water tribe children had been spotted on top of the fire nation plateau. What were you thinking?!"  
Sokka immediately pointed at his sister  
"She made me." Katara glared at him; she couldn't believe he would sell her out like that. She would get him back later for that one. Their father just sighed and sank to the floor wearily. They were not used to this. Usually when the pair did something stupid, yelling and punishments were sure to follow. He patted the ground next to him, waiting for the children to sit. Sokka and Katara exchanged confused looks as they sunk to the ground skeptically.  
"Okay guys. I know this is a big change, but you'll just have be a bit more careful from now on. I knew you would find that island eventually, and I knew neither of you would want to stay away from it; so I bought you both earth kingdom and fire nation clothes. Just don't be stupid. I trust you both to make smart decisions and whenever you go to the island, I want you to take the other one with you. Okay?" Katara had jumped up as soon as he told them about the fire nation clothes. This was the coolest thing ever! She ran to her father and hugged him. "THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!" Sokka rolled his eyes at her enthusiasm. Katara couldn't wait to actually go exploring. She couldn't keep from wondering if Zuko lived on that island...


	7. Chapter 7

It had been about two years since the family had moved from the southern water tribe to begin a new life in an Earth Kingdom city. The three were adjusting quite well to their new life. Every day after school Katara would drag Sokka around to different beaches, shops, or caves. Occasionally, they would make a visit to the firenation island to visit the different tropical places. One day while exploring the island, Katara and Sokka got separated from each other. He was distracted by circus performers dancing in the street and she took off toward a section of the beach they hadn't seen yet. Katara slipped into her white under clothes and swam in the warm water full of fish and tropical plants until her eyes stung with salt. She loved the warmth that filled every place here on the island. It was the total opposite of the white block of ice they grew up on. Every now and then they became homesick or missed their friends and family, but they had made so many new friends here too. The only thing that killed her, was not being able to water bend. She longed for more time to herself in the beautiful cave where she could comply to the strange pull of the glowing pool and bend without fear of being caught. Katara finally climbed out of the water and realized that her brother hadn't followed her. He usually sat on the beach and defended sandcastles from the "invading fire nation crabs", but he was no where in sight. Katara turned frantically, hoping he wasn't lost when a familiar figure caught her eye. The boy was about as tall as she was and wore expensive red robes. His long black hair was pulled into a tight ponytail on the top of his head and he kept glaring at a crab that crept closer and closer to his foot. Could it really be him? He appeared to be with his mother, a beautiful woman who had a soft face and long black hair that cascaded down her back in waves. At that moment, Zuko looked up and met eyes with Katara. Recognition, then shock passed across his face. She panicked, not knowing whether he had informed anyone of her bending abilities. Should she tell her father Zuko was here on the island? Would they have to move again? Katara turned on her heel and began to sprint away from the beach; she had to find Sokka and get off this island. Hundreds of questions popped into her head at once. Why was he here? Should she have talked to him? Could he possibly live here without her noticing for two years? Had they just moved here? Of course he couldn't live here; the prince was supposed to live in the castle with the Fire Lord and Lady. Her bare feet pounded the stones in the market place as she turned down every alley looking for her brother. After nearly twenty minutes of searching, she spotted his tiny ponytail, bobbing around in a crowd. He was still watching street dancers; what a goofball. She started to make her way towards the crowd when someone grabbed the sleeve of her jacket. Katara whirled around, ready to take on her attacker when a voice stopped her.

"What are you doing here, Katara?" Katara looked around nervously; Zuko understood immediately and steered her through the market and into an abandoned alley.

"You first," she demanded, " why are you here on this island?" Zuko told her about his family's yearly vacations and how they stay in a giant beach house at the top of the island.

"Now you," he inquired. Katara started at the beginning, explaining why they had to move to the Earth Kingdom City and about her weekly visits to the island.

"You havn't actually told anyone about my water bending, have you?" Zuko shook his head, still in disbelief that she was actually standing in front of him. He hadn't expected to ever see her again after leaving the South Pole. "We should meet whenever you're here on the island!" Katara said suddenly, completely over the shock of seeing him and back to her outgoing self. The pair agreed to exchange letters during the year and meet up when his family took their vacations on the island. Katara pulled a surprised Zuko into a hug before skipping off happily to retrieve her brother; he had just noticed her absence and was spinning in circles, frantically searching the crowd for his little sister. It was only then that Zuko noticed he had been smiling and immediately wiped the silly grin from his face.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOO


	8. Chapter 8

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Zuko had to avoid her at all costs. If Katara saw what had happened to him, she would definitely freak out. His uncle asked him to get more tea leaves from the marketplace and he knew Katara would be looking for him there. His letter told her to meet him at the tiny fish stand near the outer edge of the bazaar; an hour ago. Hopefully she wouldn't be too mad at him for standing her up and would still answer his letters. Katara was his best friend, even though they only got to see each other once a year. Earlier that month Zuko had made the mistake of leaving his letter to her on the sofa in the family room. Azula had seen it and decided to stick her nose into his business; like she always did. She had terrorized him the rest of the month and was currently lurking around the island, trying to find his "mysterious friend". Luckily he hadn't mentioned anything about Katara's waterbending, otherwise Azula would have tattled for sure. Zuko snuck around a corner, keeping to the shadows when he felt a jerk on the back of his cloak. He quickly yanked the hood back down around the left side of his face, knowing it was Katara who had grabbed him. He could see her brown hands on her hips from underneath the hood and knew he was in for it.

"Where the heck have you been? I've been waiting at the fish stand for over an hour! And let me tell you, that fish does NOT smell pretty after sitting there all day in the sun. Why didn't you tell me you didn't want to hang out with me?" Katara's foot was tapping the cobblestones as she awaited the prince's answer. Zuko suddenly became very frustrated.  
"You don't even know what you're talking about Katara! Just leave me alone!" Zuko was surprised at his outburst. He was usually quite calm; ever since the incident though, he was full of hatred and anger that was threatening to destroy him. Katara's eyes widened in shock as Zuko took off running through the market, down the beach, and out of sight. The prince barely made it to his secret hiding place within the wall of the cliff before he began to cry. His whole life had been ruined by his father. Zuko knew he would never be the same; how could he expect Katara to put up with the new him? Zuko angrily picked himself off of the cave floor and began to crawl through the tunnels. He wanted to go as far as the tunnels did; he had to find a place where no one would ever be able to find him. His uncle probably wouldn't even notice his absence. Zuko could become a hermit who lived in a cave for all he cared; not having to deal with anyone or anything. Nothing would ever be the same again. Azula would become Fire Lady and Zuko would waste away as a banished prince. Maybe he really should go look for the Avatar; at least he could come back home if he did. As Zuko shuffled through a large winding tunnel, he noticed a glowing green light up ahead. Small sobs were coming from the glowing cavern; Zuko climbed as fast as he could, impatient to find the source of these strange things. Suddenly, he was in the cave with glittering green gems covering the walls, a very colorful pool of water, and a very surprised Katara. Her eyes were filled with tears and his heart fell, knowing he was the cause for her sadness. "Zuko! How did you get in here?" She jumped to her feet, waiting for his answer. Her eyes suddenly widened and her mouth fell open in shock. Oh no, Zuko thought, I forgot to put my hood up! Katara walked over to where he stood and slowly brushed her fingers across the scar. "How did this happen?" she choked out through tears that were threatening to spill over yet again. The entire left side of his face had been severely burned. Katara knew of waterbenders that were able to heal cuts or burns, but she wasn't familiar with that level of bending yet. Zuko began to tell Katara everything, from when he was allowed into the war council to the day he was banished and basically stripped of his title as prince. Katara began to feel very weak. How could someone be so cruel? Her father had been angry with her thousands of times and would never even consider hurting her or Sokka. It suddenly dawned on her that Zuko had no where to go; he was a refugee just like her. "I probably won't be coming to this island anymore, Katara. I have to leave with my Uncle to look for, ugh!" Before he could finish, Katara pulled him into a giant hug. Zuko was so surprised that he just stood there while she hugged him. Finally she let go and said, "I will never forget you prince Zuko. You will always be my friend."


End file.
